According to the legend, Beale created 3 ciphers to a massive treasure, then disappeared. Only one of the ciphers has been solved. So what exactly is a cipher?

In classic cryptography, a cipher works on individual letters or bits. Substituting numbers (or pictures or symbols) for letters would be a cipher. Like a=1,b=2, c=3 etc. or a=z, b=y, c=x So anyone who has ever done an acrostic puzzle or used a decoder ring has solved a cipher. [Read more…] about Beale left behind 3 Ciphers. So what’s a cipher?

Have you ever become obsessed with a mystery? I’m hooked on The Beale Papers.

Published anonymously in 1885, the pamphlet told an intriguing tale:

In the early 1800’s, the United States was weakened by war, surrounded by enemies and nearly bankrupt. A man named Thomas Jefferson Beale went west into Spanish territory and brought back gold. In 1821 Beale disappeared along with three tons of treasure.

The only clues to its location were 3 ciphers he left behind. Only one has been broken and the Beale Treasure has never been found.

Carol Ritz left her job as a Washington DC lawyer to write thrillers. In her debut novel, 3 ciphers, genius codebreaker uncovers a dangerous link between a dead spy, three ciphers and a legendary treasure.